Jamaica Gleaner / The horrors of the trafficking in humans were sketched out by permanent secretary in the Ministry of Justice (MOJ), Carol Palmer, who is also chair of the National Task Force in Human Trafficking, at the in-house launch of a documentary on the subject at the MOJ last Wednesday.

The official premiere for the public was held at the ministry last Friday.

In her impassioned, impromptu speech to MOJ staff, as well as some of the artistic and technical people who created the 35-minute docudrama, Rescue , Palmer said the most common type of trafficking in Jamaica involved the sexual exploitation of young girls. Boys are most frequently trafficked for labour, she added.

“I hear things have started up again in Culloden,” she said, referring to the weekly auctioning off of young people which reportedly took place in that Westmoreland community some years ago. “They want to catch children – boy or girl,” Palmer continued,” and a lot of the recruiting is now taking place through social media.”

She marvelled that users take the risk of putting so much personal information in cyberspace. “Why do you have to put on social media what clothes you have on, where you’re going?” she asked.

ORGANISED CRIME

Stating that trafficking is organised crime involving billions of US dollars annually, she mentioned recent cases of international trafficking between Jamaica and St Maarten, The Bahamas and Guyana, and a 2016 case involving a 14-year-old Haitian girl being brought to Jamaica by a Jamaican fisherman who was later convicted of enslaving and abusing her.

Palmer related that when she met the Haitian girl and heard her speak of her experiences, “it was,” she said, touching her chest, “like everything was pulled out of me, for it could’ve been my child. She was brought here with a promise of good schooling. And the terrible thing is, she was impregnated and her mother disowned her (when she was returned to Haiti).”

Urging well-thinking citizens to be on the look-out for suspicious signs, Palmer said, “Trafficking is everybody’s business. The police cannot be everywhere. We must speak out for the country’s sake.”

She said Rescue will be taken “on the road,” and shown around Jamaica.

san fernando Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley prayed with members of the Muslim community and distributed zakat (charity) to the needy as he celebrated Eid-ul-Fitr at two masjids in San Fernando yesterday. He attended the Eid services on an invitation from Minister of Local Government Kazim Hosein, who is also referred to as a…

gasparillo The mother of a disabled child was shot dead inside her apartment in Gasparillo yesterday. Ornella Philips, 28, was shot once in the chest. Her body was discovered lying in the living room around 10 a.m. The country’s murder toll now stands at 243. Her eight-year-old daughter, Kayla, has cerebral palsy and depends…

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While reliving the horrors experienced by so many families after another spate of bizarre violence across the country last week, I couldn’t help but picture Tourism Minister Ed Bartlett’s rictus grin plastered on television screens while the elderly and even suckling babes were being gruesomely slaughtered inside their homes. While the rest of us were…

RJR News / The Ministry of Finance met with the Police Federation on Monday morning. The Federation served an ultimatum on the Ministry last week regarding retroactive payments to be made at the end of the month. It has also rejected the 16 per cent wage offer over four years. Addressing…

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Jamaica Gleaner / Two public bodies are spending US$5.7 million (J$730 million) over the next 12 months to build out 1.6 hectares (four acres) of land into a major artisan village and tourist attraction at the Hampden Wharf in Falmouth, Trelawny. Minister of Tourism Edmund Bartlett and officials from the Port Authority of Jamaica and…

Jamaica Gleaner / National Water Commission (NWC) customers in several Spanish Town, St Catherine communities are being urged to prepare for service disruptions until Friday as it shuts down the Yangswell Booster Station for maintenance . The NWC says the work will begin on Tuesday and should be completed by Friday. Customers in the following…

Jamaica Gleaner / Tamara Bailey, Gleaner Writer Finance Minister Audley Shaw has called for public sector workers to also focus on productivity as they demand increased salaries. “It can’t be about salary every time we talk, it needs to be about productivity and improving the productivity of every public sector worker because productivity is what…

RJR News / Assistant Commissioner of Police Ealan Powell, who has been tasked with overseeing the implementation of the State of Emergency in the St. Catherine North Division, has said his team will ensure that there are no human rights violations. “We are ensuring that when persons are brought in, they are processed…

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RJR News / Wednesday, March 21 is being celebrated as World Poetry Day. One of the main objectives of the day is to support linguistic diversity through poetic expression and to offer endangered languages the opportunity to be heard within their communities. This year, Poet Laureate of Jamaica Lorna Goodison, who was recently…

RJR News / Arrangements are being made for the processing of persons who have been detained since Sunday’s declaration of the State of Public Emergency in crime plagued communities in sections of the St. Catherine North police division. It’s unclear how many persons have been picked up so far. A statement from the police…

RJR News / R&B singer Trey Songz surrendered to LAPD to face a felony domestic violence charge early Monday morning. The singer turned himself in, with his attorney Shawn Holley, for the alleged incident involving a woman he was out with in L.A. last month during NBA All-Star weekend. He was booked and…

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RJR News / Members of the General Council of the Jamaica Teachers’ Association (JTA) have voted to reject the latest wage offer made by the government. The government’s latest offer had been made on Friday following three days of industrial action by the teachers last week. JTA members opted to reject the…

Jamaica Gleaner / State Minister for Finance Ruddy Spencer is promising increased assistance for Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) supporters through the Rural Agricultural Development Authority (RADA) now that a member of the party is the board chairman. Former Clarendon North Western MP Michael Stern was appointed board chairman in August last year. IN PHOTO: Michael…

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Jamaica Gleaner / HARARE, Zimbabwe (CMC): Marlon Samuels countered Brendan Taylor’s spectacular 10th One-Day International (ODI) hundred with an audacious half-century as the Windies completed their fifth highest run chase in ODIs, to beat Zimbabwe by four wickets and haul themselves back into contention for a spot in next year’s ICC World Cup in England. Facing…

Jamaica Gleaner / The police’s Corporate Communications Unit (CCU) has confirmed that two persons were fatally shot in separate incidents within the zone of special operations (ZOSO) in Denham Town yesterday. The identities of the dead men have not been revealed. However, CCU head, Inspector Dahlia Garrick, said the early-morning shootings, which took place on…

Jamaica Gleaner / The Jamaica Urban Transit Company (JUTC) says passengers who travel to and from Spanish Town should expect delays as a result of the State of Public Emergency in the St Catherine North Police Division. At the same time, the company says it will be increasing the number of buses operating on Spanish…

Jamaica Gleaner / The police are reporting that four members of the Montego Bay based G-City Gang are among the 123 people so far detained in the State of Public Emergency in the St Catherine North division. The State of Public Emergency was declared yesterday by Prime Minister Andrew Holness. According to the police, 96…

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RJR News / Oil prices slipped on Monday as Wall Street slid more than one per cent and energy market investors remained wary of growing crude supply, although tensions between Saudi Arabia and Iran gave prices some support. Brent crude futures were down 24 cents at $65.97 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate…

RJR News / The Bank of Jamaica (BOJ), has issued a positive outlook for the island’s deposit taking institutions. In its just released 2017 annual report the Central Bank said with the stable economy, the low interest rate regime and sustained demand for credit, deposit taking institutions are expected to continue to perform positively…

Jamaica Gleaner / Former army chief Major General Antony Anderson was this morning sworn in as the 30th Commissioner of Police. He succeeds George Quallo who retired earlier this year. Anderson was sworn by Bishop Dr Gary Welsh, Justice of the Peace and Assistant Commissioner of Police,in during a brief ceremony at his Old Hope Road offices….

RJR News / Members of the group Fifth Harmony have announced they’re going to be taking a break to focus on their solo careers. In a message to fans on Twitter, the band members said they were going their separate ways in order to stay authentic to themselves and to their fans. They…

RJR News / Uber has said it is suspending self-driving car tests in all US cities after a fatal accident. A woman who crossing a street in Arizona was hit and later died. Uber said it was cooperating with local authorities in Arizona following the crash. …

RJR News / The main opposition United Progressive Party (UPP) in Antigua and Barbuda has expressed concern about the state of the register for elections ahead of Wednesday’s polls. In a statement, the party said the register for the election that was published on March 12 might have been released in error and may not…